It’s a good thing a trip like this covers two calendar days – it’s way too much to deal with in one day especially with a 5+ hour stopover in Amsterdam! My trip began in a most auspicious way. Car was to be returned to the rental company in NY by 4 PM. I left in plenty of time, but almost immediately had to turn around and return my dad’s credit card which I had in my wallet to him. OK, now I had 10 minutes less. And then, out of nowhere there was an immense number of cars on the street and traffic delays. Then of course there’s the maze of roads commonly known as Kennedy Airport. I pulled in at the return with 3 minutes to spare! The very kind people at Delta let me check my bags even though I was about 90 minutes earlier than policy allows, and then at the Sky Club in B concourse, Terminal 4 where they were too filled up to let me in as early as I was, they sent me to the less crowded Sky Club in Concourse A and called to ask them to let me in early. The stars are just perfectly aligned.

Of course, when I got to Amsterdam, the new visa program was in effect, and the digital machines were working imperfectly and couldn’t read my fingerprints (this was a little nutty) so I stood in line. This occurrence is why I wanted a long layover. OK, 5 hours was a bit long, but it worked. I saw something really strange in the airport.

There were these 4 doors, a little bit later, there were another 4 doors. The blue sign says “for evacuation purposes only.” So, what was weird? There was no corridor on the other side of these doors, the doors were like a divider, like a room divider. Just the walkway on either side of them. My partner, back home in Phoenix, suggested they were an art installation, but I don’t think so.

If you know any of the thousands of photos I take when traveling you might recollect the doors and alleys I like to shoot.

This is the entryway to the Pension Neuer Market where I’ll be staying for the next week.

Inside the door is a charming hallway that leads eventually to a one-person elevator. As I got in it I remembered the really scary tiny elevator in Paris that had a penchant for getting stuck between floors, with a manager who couldn’t have cared less. This elevator, in Vienna, although old, worked like a charm, and the person staffing the reception area couldn’t have been more helpful.

I probably needed sleep but I decided I needed a glass of wine and food so I left the hotel prepared to wander around in search of an appealing restaurant, and hoped I wouldn’t get lost. I crossed the street and found myself in front of a wonderful Italian restaurant. Sauvignon blanc, crusty bread and olives, gnocchi, and tiramisu. What could be a more perfect ending to the beginning of my first day (ok, only my first hours) in Vienna?